Indian Gaming Startups Embrace Culture to Compete with China

Indian Gaming Startups Embrace Culture to Compete with China

Synopsis

In the vibrant world of play, Indian board games and toys are experiencing a renaissance. Consumers are leaning towards locally inspired options, moving away from homogenized global toys. A new wave of entrepreneurs is tapping into India's rich tapestry of history and mythology to create engaging, culturally resonant products.

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Agencies
Can a political strategy board game, that too inspired by a documentary on Arvind Kejriwal, be fun? Shrestha Saha found it indeed could be at a game of SHASN last year. Saha, a Bengaluru-based brand storyteller, shelled out Rs 3,500 for the game and later bought another two-player board. “I was not looking for an Indian game but the relevance helped. The game was super challenging,” she says. “We also saw our friends lose all their morals towards the end of the game in a bid to win.”

This would please Zain Memon, SHASN’s designer and executive producer of the documentary An Insignificant Man. The game, he says, sets out to answer a question: “How does power behave, and why do good people make the choices they make once they’re inside the machine?” Memon believes a game can do something no film can: it makes you complicit.

This editorial summary reflects ET Tech and other public reporting on Indian Gaming Startups Embrace Culture to Compete with China.

Reviewed by WTGuru editorial team.